If there was a more obvious sign that Arsenal need to add reinforcements to the side before they travel up to Newcastle in around a month’s time, I simply do not know what it looks like. Well over twenty shots and just three on target and that compares to an xG which managed to exceed the number of times the team did indeed test Martin Dubravka.
That is a very rare statistic, not specifically for Arsenal, but in football in general. It is easy to come away from games and say well that was x, y and z. Those words tend to be of a persuasion not suitable for the written word here, but you catch my drift.
Arsenal were not this on Tuesday night, they didn’t play too badly at all. 23 shots is a testament to that and they created a level of quality chances that should have been scored.
Be that Jurrien Timber’s header, William Saliba’s blocked effort, Gabriel Martinelli’s shot that hit the post or Kai Havertz’s… well the less said about that the better. However do not worry, that will be a focus.
Arsenal could have played for another ninety minutes and they probably would not have scored. The irony being that is exactly what they have too with Mikel Arteta making reference to the typical two-legged cliché of it being only half-time in the tie.
Newcastle are in dreamland. The chance to take a two-goal lead to St James’ Park is a late Christmas present that when the draw was made no one was truly expecting.
Some might say that the tie is over, and I empathise with that. Yet with the significant amount of time that exists between this and the next game – around a month – a lot can change.
Newcastle came into this game off the back of six wins, seven now, and the form side in the league alongside Nottingham Forest. Arsenal were the effective antithesis of the Magpies, out of form, lacking in players and depth, illness still understood to be a factor in the group and failing to string more than three wins together all season.
This was the first home defeat since April when Aston Villa effectively ripped the title away from Arsenal. There was such a low feeling after that game but it was one of true disappointment.
There was almost a sense of expectance that Arsenal wouldn’t win. The atmosphere was flat from the opening moments of the game and as the chances came and went, hope that the noise might carry the Gunners to their first goal were extinguished as Alexander Isak slammed in the opener.
The Swede was involved in the second, with his shot forcing David Raya to parry the ball straight to the very grateful Antony Gordon. Kai Havertz would have a chance to halve the deficit and what followed was a horrendous attempt at a header.
I have a lot of time for Havertz and think he is widely underrated by supporters. But it was glaringly obvious what it could be like for Arsenal if they were to add that killer striker which, for all the love in the world, Havertz simply is not.
The question is will the club act this winter? If the answer isn’t yes, despite what football.london understands as having the financial freedom to do so, there are definitely questions to be had.
While the centre-forward market is not exactly brimming with options, the same cannot be said for the wide areas where frankly there are a plethora of potential candidates. Some, such as Nico Williams, have release clauses too making it even easier for a deal to be done if the club are willing to do it.
That is not necessarily a question for Mikel Arteta, who is understood to be keen to strengthen where possible, but for those making the executive decisions. Without a sporting director, there had been speculation of how tricky it might be to act.
Jason Ayto has stepped into the void left by the now-resigned Edu Gaspar. While the search to replace the Brazilian is not expected to see a candidate come in until closer to, if not in, the summer.
Therefore, Arsenal will need to act without the guidance of a new figurehead and with their own internal heads. Arteta is pivotal to those discussions, as is Ayto, Tim Lewis, the vice-chairman and the owners Stan and Josh Kroenke.
So far, though, there has been little noise about anything imminent, and certainly nothing is understood to be advanced. That needs to change quickly.
Arsenal have seven more games before they play Newcastle again, six of them in this month alone and they are not exactly simple challenges. The earlier that reinforcements can be secured the better.
The longer it goes, the more unrest will build, especially if performances do not improve. Granted, key players are missing, and those who are available are far from fresh, but sometimes you need to be seen to be helping yourself.
While Arteta says he has to focus on the players he has, which is hardly a surprise. There are limits to what is achievable and right now we are seeing a limit.
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